noroeoss



, no Model. 2 Sheets-Sheet 2-.

A. D; NOROROSS. ,SHEDDING. MECHANISM FOR. LO'OMS'.

NO. 373,941. Pa, tented NOV. 29,1881

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UNITED STATES P TENT QFFICE.

ANDREW n. NOROBQSS, on oY sToN, MASSACHUSETTS, ASSICNCE OF TWO-THIRDS TO LYMAN L. AND ELLEN H. CLARK, on SAME PLACE.

SHEDDING MECHANISM FOR LOOMS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 373,941, dated November 29, 1887.

Application filed June 30, 1886.

To 41. whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, ANDREW D. NoECRoss, of Royalston, in the county of Worcester and State of Massachusetts, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Shedding Mech anism for vLooms, of which the following, taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, is a specification.

My invention relates to looms for weaving cotton, woolen, or other goods, and is specially adapted as an improvement on the wellknown Knowles loom, shown and described in LettersPatent No. 134.992, granted to said Knowles January 21, 1873, for Weaving woolens, but may, nevertheless, with a slight change in form, but none in substance, be applied to any similar loom now in use.

All looms which I have examined work either a close shed or an openshed; but none can be readily changed to work either one when desired.

My invention is an improved head-motion, designed and intended to be readily changed from one motion to the other without much trouble. Y

The most apparent utility yet developed and demonstrated in my invention is in giving a close-shed motion on the Knowlesloom, something which, as far as my knowledge extends, has not been accomplished previous to my said invention.

As I believe it well known to all persons, or, if not known, the knowledge to be within the easy reach'of all, I will not describe the mechanism of a loom, other than the constituents of my invention, further than to mention the following points and principles, which I believe are common to all weaving-machines: first, that the warp passes through such'a number of harnesses as may be necessary; second, that the mechanical movement of the loom separates the threads of the warp by raising some of the harnesses and lowering others, making a,jaw-like opening through which the shuttle carrying the filling travels, thuslaying in a thread offilling; third, that a further mechanism (the lathe) then moves up against the thread of filling thus laid and pushes the same closely up into the cloth; fourth, that the harnesses then change positions, those which were up passing down, and vice versa, the warps carried by the respect- Serial No. 206,747. (No model.)

I ive harnesses thus binding the thread of filling laid in by the shuttle, and, so far as this thread is concerned, completing the weave and leaving the warps again held apartto admit the shuttle at its next pick. This is varied in a close shed in this, that after the shuttle has passed between the warps, laying the thread of filling, and before the lathe presses the filling into place, the harnesses move toward each other to a position holding theseveral warps parallel to each other and slightly binding upon the filling, the lathe then performing its function of pushing the fillinginto place before the warps again open for the reception of the shuttle.

I have in my invention constructed a headmotion for looms which is simple in structure, positive in action, and different in principle from others, and which, with slight changes, is adapted to produce both an open and close she'd.

For a detailed description of my said invention reference may be had to the accompanying sheets of drawings, forming part of this specification, in which Figure 1 shows a side elevation of device embodying my invention, working a close shed with shed closed. Fig. 2 shows a similar view with the shed open to receive the shuttle before coming to a close shed, as shown in Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a broken detailed view showing parts modified for producing an open shed; and Fig. 4: is an end View of the removable cog-teeth, hereinafter described.

Similar letters refer to similar parts throughout the several views.

A represents a portion of the side frame of a loom.

B B are moving frames, to which are pivoted the bars E E.

G O are springs, their function being to assist in bringing back the bars E E after said bars are raised by the pins of the drum Q.

D D are the jacks, which are connected, as usual, with the harnesses.

E E are the drivingbars which control the respective jacks, as hereinafter described.

F F are notches in the moving frames B B.

G is a latch or catch-lock playing into the' notches 'F F, respectively, to hold the harnesses at a dwell while the shuttle makes its movement in the first instance, and while the lathe presses the filling closely in place in the second.

H is a pivot upon which the rear or outer end of latch G plays.

I is a contracting spiral spring attached at one end to the latch G and at its other to any convenient arbitrary point, its function being to raise the latch G up out of the notches F F when the downward pull on the rod K by the cam L is discontinued.

K is aconnectingrod running from latch G to cam L on cylinder R.

Lisa cam on cylinder B, said cylinder having such relation to the rest of my devices that the can] may draw the rod K and therewith the latch G down into the dwell-notches F F at the proper times.

Mdesignates the cog-teeth on cylinders R R. I have preferred to make these cog-teeth five in numberon each cylinder, although the number may be varied according to the size oftecth and throw ofjacks desired.

N designates recesses in cyli udcrs R R, which recesses in working a close shed are of no utility, but, when my invention is used to work an open shed, hold removable cog'tceth therein inserted.

N, Fig. 4, are the removable teeth of the cylinders R R. (Shown applied in Fig. 3.)

O O are teeth on driving-bars E E.

P designates pins on the pattern-drum Q.

Q is the pattern-drum, which, by its revolutions and the arrangement of pins thereon, throws the driving-bars E E in or out of gear with cylinders R R at such intervals as are necessary to bring in use the warp of the barnesses governed by the jacks attached to the respective driving-bars.

R R are cylinder-gears which operate the bars and sliding frames by engaging with the teeth thereon. The means for operating the cylinder-gears and patterndrum are wellknown mechanical devices, such as are shown in Letters Patent No. 27 4, 913, of George Orompton, dated April 3, 1883, and in Letters Patent No. 282,502, of George Grompton, dated August 7, 1883, to which reference is hereby made.

S is a pin fixed to frame A, which stops bars E E from being moved too far upward.

T T T T are frames attached to loom-frame A, having side pieces parallel to the loomframe, and their function is to hold in place the moving frames B B.

So far as working a close shed is concerned, Figs. 1 and 2 show the construction and relation of the parts of my invention, all operating parts of which are driven by power from the outside of the frame A, and their movements regulated by such arrangement of gears as may be necessary and as would be apparent to any mechanic having in view the operation of my invention in connection with the remaining mechanism of a loom.

The operation of my invention in working a close shed I will now briefly describe.

For the purposes of this specification but two jacks are shown and described; but in the practical operation of my invention as many duplicates of the parts shown will be arranged upon the length of the cylinders R R as may be required to operate the number of harnesses desired to be used and operated.

It is to all persons skilled in the structure of looms and in the art of weaving known without illustration that to the jacks D D are attached wires, straps, or other connections by which the harnesses are moved up or down by the movement of said jacks. In Fig. 1 the loorn is at a close shedthat is to say, the threads of warp in the two harnesses governed by the jacks D and D are parallel and slightly binding upon the thread of filling laid in by the preceding pick of the shuttle. It is also apparent from the drawingsin Fig. 1 that the harnesses are held in an arbitrary motionless dwell during the time that has elapsed since the driving-bars E F were driven to their present position by the cogs on cylinders RR playing on the teeth on bars E E or on teeth on sliding frames B B, this dwell being necessary to allow the lathe to perform its func* tions of pressing the filling last laid firmly in place. It is also apparent in Fig. 2 that jack D has been pressed backward from the position shown in Fig. 1 by the cogs on cylinder R playing upon teeth 0 on the underside of bar E", and that jack D has been brought forward by the cylinder-gear Rplaying upon the teeth 0 on the upper side of bar E; and in the present position the jacks are locked by latch G, as shown, holding the same at a dwell while the shuttle lays another thread of filling. The cogs on cylinders R It will then connect with the teeth on frames B B, bringing the jacks to the close-shed position shown in Fig. 1, where another dwell occurs. The pattern wheel or drum Q will have then raised driving-bar E to connect with gear R and lowered driving-bar E to connect with gear R, which will force the jacks open in the same manner as shown in Fig. 2, except that the two jacks D and D will have changed places, and a dwell will here occur, after which, by the means apparent and before described, the jacks will be driven to position shown in Fig. 1, where another dwell occurs. Next they will be driven to position in Fig. 2again, and so on continuously. The dwell is caused by leaving three-fourths of the circumferences of cylinders R It blank-that is, without gearteeth-and by the latch G playing in the notches F of the sliding frames B B, the said dwell being about one-quarter of a turn, giving the shuttle a chance to pass through the opening of the threads of the warp.

For the purpose of this specification I have shown the drum Q provided with such an arrangement of pins as may be necessary for the regulation of the movement of the bars E E, either to connect them, or either of them,with the cylinder-gear above or below, or to entirely disconnect them, or either of them, when, for the purpose of the pattern being woven, the

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harnesses which they govern do not come in requisition.

I claim nothing new in this drum and its arrangement of pins, as any mechanical device which will bring about the same results may be used, I myself preferring to use an endless chain with risers and sinkers passing continuously over a shaft, performing the same functions as the pins and drum in the drawings. The cylinder-gears RB and drum Q or chainshaft are revolved, as already indicated, by well-known mechanical arrangements of gear on the end of shafts. The bars E E are hinged to the frames B B, as shown in Figs. 1 and 2, at V. The frames on the inner and upper horizontal side have teeth O,to engage with cylinder R, and on the inner and lower horizontal side to engage with cylinder B. To enable the cylinder-gears-to engage with the teeth on the frames 'or on the bars, a space of one tooth is left between the first and second teeth on'the bars and frames, as shown in the drawings. WVhen the frames are carried forward,in opening a shed,as far as the mechanism allows, the teeth 0 on the upper horizontal side of frames B B are then in position to come in contact with cogs N on the cylinder B, and the frames are then moved backward to the closed-shed position by said cylinder-gear R engaging with said teeth; and when frames B B are carried backward in opening a shed as far as the mechanism allows, they are carried forward again to the closed-shed position by the teeth 0 on their lower horizontal sides engaging with cylinder-gear R. The teeth 0 on the bars E E are arranged on the upper and lower side of each bar E E, as shown in Fig. 1, and when the teeth on the upper side are engaged with cylinder-gear It the bars are moved forward, and when the teeth on the lower side are engaged with cylinder-gear R the bars are moved backward at the proper times,iu accordance with the pins and surface of patterndrum Q. The teeth on the under side of the bars E E are arranged so that the first tooth, which is the left tooth shown in Fig. 1, on the under side is almost directly beneath the first tooth, which is the right tooth shown in Fig. 1, on the upper side of said bars.

Having thus described my invention as adapted to produce a close shed, I will now describe the same as adapted to produce an open shed. I first remove the sliding frames B B and bars E E, disconnecting them from the gears, and'insert extra teeth, N, in any suitable manner in recesses N of cylinders B B. Said teeth thus inserted are retained in their position and are prevented from moving out at the end of said cylinders by a screw or pin, N said cylinders with teeth thus inserted being shown in Fig. 3. I then insert sliding frames, as shown in Fig; 3,'and bars differing from frames B B and bars E E, in that the sliding frame, as shown in Fig. 3, has no teeth 0, and the bars, as shown in Fig. 3, have the number ofteeth doubled. The bars being then connected with the jacks are operated by the cylinder-gears R R, the cogs engaging with teeth on said bars, and as the teeth and cogs are increased in number and are arranged together, as shown in Fig. 3, the bars are carried forward one half-revolution of the cylinder B by cogs playing on teeth on upper side of said bar before a dwell ensues, and in a similar manner are carried backward by cylinder It by cogs playing on teeth on the lower side of said bars.

In Fig. 3 I have shown the arrangement of cogs on the cylinders and driving-bars which I have found most desirable in the adaptation of my invention to work an open shed.

Having fully described my invention, what I desire to claim and secure by Letters Patent is- 1. In combination, the sliding frames B B, provided with teeth 0, bars E E, provided with teeth 0, jacks D D, drum Q, springs O 0, pin S, and cylinder-gears B R, all constructed and arranged substantially as described, and for the purpose set forth.

2. In combination, the sliding frames B B, provided with teeth 0, bars E E, provided with teeth 0, and the cylindergears It R, all constructed and arranged as described, and for the purpose set forth.

3. In combination, the cylinder-gears R It, having removable teeth thereon, bars E E, with teeth arranged to engage with said cylinder-gears, and sliding frames B B, without teeth, arranged to operate an open-shed motion, substantially as described.

4. In combination, cylinder-gear B, latch G, pivot H, the spring I, rod K, and cam L, connecting with and operating said latch, the sliding frames B B, provided with teeth and notches F F, frame T, cylinder-gear R, bars E E, provided with teeth 0 and pivoted to the sliding frames, pin S and drum Q, springs O O, and jacks D D, arranged to operate a close-shed motion,all substantially as described and shown.

5. In combination, cylinder-gear R, provided with removable teeth, latch G, pivot H, the spring I, rod K, and cam L, connecting with and operating said latch, the sliding frames B B, provided with notches F F, frame T, cylindergear. R, provided with removable teeth, bars E E, provided with teeth 0, arranged to engage with said cylindergears R It and pivoted to the sliding frames, pin S and drum Q, springs C G, and jacks D D, all arranged to operate an open-shed motion, all substantially as described and shown.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification, in the presence of two subscribing witnesses, on this 2d day of J une, A. D. 1886'. 1

ANDREW D. noncaoss.

Witnesses:

W. HAYNES, H. DUNHAM. 

